The Art of Four
by Kyran
Summary: Join Sonic's long lost brother as he searches to discover his true identity. A heart warming Sonic Underground fic about nothing in particular.
1. Chapter 1

**The Art of Four**

I've just awakened from a strange and meaningless dream. Maybe it was real. I can't concentrate. I can't even move. I can feel that I'm cold, as cold as ice, but I can't do anything about it. Dark red surrounds me. Where am I? Who am I? I can't remember much, if anything at all. I can just remember a lift, a lift at the very end, but yet it does not matter, or maybe it does, all these random images suddenly appearing in my head, spinning madly. I can't take much more of this torment, make it stop, please someone, make the pain stop. Think, concentrate, I should try to remember.

The earliest image I can piece together is of three sets of rails. The kind you are likely to find locomotives on. Two of them go as far as the eye can see, mainly because of the darkness, but one stops in front of me (probably used to put spare trucks on). This is of no importance. Why am I remembering this? Wait..., I am with two hedgehogs, one purple and the other green. Looking back I am still unclear of who I am, or was, yet obviously that was not the case back then. Then I knew perfectly well who I was. Blast my weak memory. Who could I have been? I believe a problem had arisen and all three of us needed a quick route out. What was the name of those two hedgehogs? Ah yes, the first ones name is Sonia, but the second, the green hedgehog is a complete blank to me. Sonic, maybe his name is Sonic, or maybe that's my name. I remember a locomotive stationed on the middle track, but to my dismay not the conversation that included it. The conversation must have been about using it as a means of getting away; away from what I am clueless. Near the tracks is a clearing surrounded by the shadow of trees. Sonia takes the lead as we race into the darkness which is the clearing; an outline of an aircraft appears from the mist.

There was only one access door to this craft. Inside were three seats. The first was a single-seater on the front left side of the aircraft. The second to the front right side also seated one person. The third took up the entire back area and was capable of seating three people. It was very much like a non-economical American car, but in the middle of the two front seats there was no gear control or handbrake. It just had a walk way in which you could get to the front two seats as well as the controls. The one and only door was to the back left of the craft.

Sonia is the first to jump in and she quickly takes to the front left seat and starts the craft, I am the second to jump in and I take the right of the back seat follow by the green hedgehog, who took the middle of the back seat. A blue hedgehog appears from the outside darkness and takes the left side of the back seat. I remember his name, its Sonic. The purple hedgehogs name is Sonia, the blue hedgehogs name is Sonic and the green hedgehogs name is, Manic, I remember all three of them. So if I'm not Sonic, who am I? The door is closed and a conversation which I would most likely have valued was born. Due to my blasted brain and it's feelble arguments with my subconscious. I do not as of yet have the connections to remember the whole conversation. But it was about none other then myself. It seemed that I was depressed about being the only one which did not have a power, Sonic has his speed and a twirl thing, Sonia had the twirl thing as well, and Manic had power over earth, leaving myself as the odd one out. That's it! I'm their brother, the fourth hedgehog, the one that was not going to rule, didn't have a medaling or any special powers. The one that was never in the spot light, and never sang in Sonic Underground. Cool, I certainly got the pick of the litter now didn't I?

The conversation soon changed to the mission which was at hand, no surprise that I can't remember it. Sonic put on his equipment, opened the door and jumped out. Now for faze two. Sonia jumps in the back left seat as I go for the front left one as Manic takes my original place. I was to pilot the craft. But it didn't go as smoothly as I would have liked. Through the window all I could see was what looked like a grey wall with shadows around it. Something must have gone wrong. One of Robotnik's tractor beams must have had a lock on us. Robotnik, yes I remember him, big round fellow. The door open and Sonia and Manic were pulled out by the SWATbot brothers. Thinking back I would have thought they would put up more of a fight but I guess it was all part of the operation. I don't know what Robotnik said next but I guess it went something like this: 'I finally have two of those three pesky hedgehogs.' Every one always forgets about the fourth hedgehog. 'Tie them up and put them back in the hovercraft! Then catapult them into the wall.' At that moment I came out of hiding. I bargained with the real man Robotnik saying that we would be more use to him robotized then dead. Strange thing I had ask for, normally I would have just pleaded for my life, asked to join him, or at least spat in his face. Must have been because of the fact that I'm a Sonic sibling, stupid Sonic sibling in-stinks. (The three Ses.) A bargain was made, the three of us would go quietly and get robotized and not be catapulted into the wall. After all a hedgehog always keeps his word, right? We started to walk to the robotizer, Manic leading, me in the middle followed by the one and only girl Sonic sibling, Sonia. At this time I suddenly realised what my special power was and its something I can say with a hundred percent certainty, "Hey I know what my special power is, I'm taller then you." I said to Manic. Thinking back I realise that most hedgehogs are lacking in the area just above the chilidog entrance. We turned a corner and the game of follow the leader was reversed. Sonia was in the front, follow by myself and Manic. We talked about the robotizer and that a power ring might be able to protect someone from it. We had come to a dead end. There was a lift in the middle of the room, a lot like a maintenance lift, or a lift you'd find at a mine. The three of us step onto it, hoping that Sonic would hurry up and save us. The lift started descending. I started to lose my balance, but luckily I eventually found something to hold onto. The lift had gone down only a meter or so when it suddenly reversed its original intended method of descending and started ascend instead. It came back to the place we had started. Robotnik was entering the room at that time, and strangely the lift started to descend again. After it repeating itself a few times we found out that it was because the lift was rocking. Sonia and Manic got off the lift and the lift made its way down peacefully, stupid safety SWATbots. (The other three Ses.) I remember the next room quite clearly, yet it is going to be bogan of a bill to describe.

Level with and on each side of the elevator were two isosceles triangles, with their Pythagoras' facing away from the lift. The right isosceles triangle had an icon on it, of what, I have forgotten. At this time I should point out that there seemed to be no floor to this room, just darkness down below. Most likely it was just the illusion of a bottomless room. The middle section of the room was a hexagon divided into several quadrilaterals, most of which looked like squares. The middle square in the hexagon had another icon, which I have had the misfortune of also forgetting. Some of the squares surrounding the centre square, which had been honored with the forgettable icon, had a positive sign (+) or a negative sign (-) drawn on them. Beyond this strange hexagon are two more right angles and a large square. The room is symmetrical. The square on the other side of the room is where the lift would be. But nothing of Robotnik's can be too symmetrical; instead of a lift there is a door. Surprise, surprise.

I stepped out of the lift onto the isosceles triangle on the right, it started to crack so I jumped to the other triangle but instead of this one falling into nothingness like the one before it, or so it seemed, it feel onto a slightly lower platform covered in bark chips.

By this time the lift had already gone back to the top and was descending with Manic. He stepped out of the lift and onto the bark chips. I suddenly expressed my feelings of sorrow for him only being in Sonic Underground and not in any of the more popular shows, and as for Sonia? Who gives a toss?


	2. Chapter 2

I must be going insane. I can sense the room I'm in is like a hollowed donut, yet all I can see is this dark red that circles me like a shark. I seem to have just had a breakthrough; I can now move my neck so that my face is directed to my right arm. It doesn't look good, the arm that is, which was once a hedgehog arm cover in short white fur is now a deactivated robotic arm. Oh great, I think I know where this is heading. I can hear someone coming towards me from my right.

"So your Con's newest victim?" The approaching entity asks. "What's wrong" The entity asks again after a few moments of silence. "Have you problems recovering from Con's treatment?"

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I am a member of the Renegade." The entity starts. "You've heard of the Renegade right? We were Queen Alana privet guard before Robotnik took over. I tell you, we never saw that coming."

I'd best make friends with this person and the easiest way of doing that would be to continue with this conversation. "I feel inclined to ask why you didn't see it coming." I said trying to seem interested and interesting.

"You don't expect one of your own to turn on you." The suddenly sad voice replies. "Bla, wallowing in self-pity does me no justice. I'm Tinker by the way, and you are?" Who am I? That's a good question, a question which is yet to be fully answered. "What's your name?"

I must think of something smart, to demonstrate my intelligence. "I don't know." Maybe there's a reason I was never going to rule. "But I'm hoping some nice person out there will come forward and tell me."

"I'd best correct your senses and take you to the others." She says while fiddling with some buttons on the right side of my head. Wow, I can see perfectly, every thing is exactly how I thought it would be, strange. The only thing I had an error with was Tinker. I though she would be some hot hedgehog babe. Tinker's body was all robotic and she was at least twice my height, but above all else she was a human. I now understand what she meant about not expecting one of your own to turn on you.

"I can move my head perfectly but not my arms or legs." I tell her.

"You're not meant to be able to move your body. The Con robotizer is only meant to allow you to retain complete control over your mind." I tell you, this human has completely lost me. "You know what the Con robotizer is right? No? Con is Robotnik's newest robotizer, reserved only for the privileged in Robotnik's eyes, it was a major change from the last few versions. Con was not created to replace the common Seconded Generation Robotizer but was made for a few individuals Robotnik had chosen. The few he had chosen were Queen Alana, her children and the Renegade." I guess she should be able to figure out who I am. "So I guess your one of Queen Alana's offspring. Let's see, there's Sonic, Manic, Sonia and a fourth one, don't remember his name though." Every one and I mean every one forgets about the fourth hedgehog. "I guess you're the fourth one, come I'll drag you to the others." She finishes, clamping her robotic hands around what seems to be a handle at the back of my shoulders.

"Here are the others." Tinker stated after she had dragged me around to the other side of the donut shaped complex. "So far Robotnik has captured sixteen of us but only eight are here in this room."

"Who's he?" A human with a ponytail asks Tinker.

"His that fourth hedgehog, you know the one." Tinker replies.

"Yeah, of course I know the fourth one." Wow, finally some one who knows me. "Well, no I don't." Funny, there seems to be unnatural forces at work in my life. Let's recap, actually lets not, it's too depressing. Basically I'm all alone. "Is that the one that psychic had a particular interest in? Yeah I know your, your good old what's-his-name. I tell yea, when ever your brothers were off playing somewhere little what's-his-name was with that psychic, you were probably learning some psychical stuff."

"You have a way with words you know that?" Tinker replies to the ponytail human.

"It's a gift my dear Tinker, it's a gift." Tinker lets go of the handle at the back of my neck and goes over to flirt with the ponytail human.

Seven of the humans have their bodies completely robotized just like Tinker. However, the eighth one is different. The eighth one wares a dark brown cape with a hood which seems to projects a shadow onto the face allowing only the chin and mouth are viewable. Half of his chin is metal as well as parts of his hands. "You have yet to reclaim your body?" That one asks me.

"I haven't, speaking of bodies why is yours different from the others?"

"I was not robotized by Con like the others. I was robotized by the basic Seconded Generation Robotizer but it did not have the power to fully robotize a Guardian. I escaped from it with complete control over my mind and body although because the robotization process was interrupted I am somewhat of a mess." A Guardian hey, that sounds like an interesting occupation I wonder if they've got a union.

"If you were not robotized by Con, and have complete control over your mind and body, why are you here?" I asked the Guardian human.

"That's a good question. I come here to inform them about their mission objectives and what our operatives are doing, done. I think you should come with me to Renegade HQ." The Guardian human tells me pulling back his hood showing his whole half-robotic half-human face. "You could be very, very useful."

"I can't move my legs." I tell him.

"The Renegade have created a virus which works with Con's victims. I'll install it on you. By the way call me Guardian Human or Guardian for short, but don't call me that when any other Guardians are around. There I've installed it but remember this is only a temporary fix. It's not going to last forever so you'd best learn how to overcome the protective programming." He walks over to the security doors and waits for me to follow. "Now remember you are a robot so you basically have access to every thing in Robotropolis but you should always have reason for going somewhere. We don't want Robotnik knowing that we have cracked Con's programming. I on the other hand can do whatever I want cause he already knows about me." He opens the door and we out into a corridor. On the right side are a few weapons strapped on the wall. The Guardian walks over to what looks like a rode and equips it. The rode is mostly dullish gray except for a small sphere which is held into place by four sharp isosceles triangles. "You know, back before this whole Robotnik mess started Sonic and Manic were some what cool."

"What happen?" I ask.

"They created the Sonic Underground."

"And as for Sonia?"

"Who gives a toss?"


End file.
